Kindle Fire caution (off topic) December 11, 2011, 08:03:14 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127275I thought I'd pass on something that came up in private correspondence. If anybody out there is thinking of getting a Kindle Fire for a child, be aware that it has no parental controls, and no way to prevent its user from making purchases on your Amazon account (other than de-authorizing it, which will cause many of its apps to stop working). In other words, if you hand one of these tablets to your ten-year-old nephew, don't be surprised to find him browsing porn sites and purchasing software, songs, videos and merchandise on your Amazon account. This also means if you should lose your Kindle Fire, whoever finds it will have open access to your Amazon account. The Fire comes already set up to use your Amazon account, with One-Click Purchasing enabled. A user can change the delivery address of any order. Need I say more? The Nook Tablet has decent parental controls, so if you're looking for a 7" tablet, it may be a better choice for a child. The iPad has excellent, comprehensive and flexible parental and purchasing controls, but of course it costs more. Then again, you get a lot more. The iPod Touch has exactly the same parental/purchasing controls as the iPad, so it might make a good affordable "mini-tablet" gift for a child. Yes, it has a smaller screen... but by the same token, it's shirt-pocketable, which the 7" and 10" tablets are not. Most important, any of the Apple iOS devices (iPhone/iPod/iPad) is enormously more versatile and useful than the 7" Kindle and Nook tablets just mentioned. I've used all the Apple devices extensively, and put in many hours with my Kindle Fire, and there's just no comparison. The Fire is cute at first glance, but the features aren't there (it doesn't even have volume control buttons!), and the apps certainly aren't there. Amazon says it has 5,000 apps for the Fire. The iPad offers 150,000 tailor-made apps, and it can run several hundred thousand more that were designed for the iPhone/iPod Touch. This isn't just a numbers game, either; crucial apps such as Google Search, Google Maps and Flipboard are simply not available for the Fire. I can't tell you how many times I've searched for some basic function in Amazon's tiny Appstore, only to come up with "not found." Sorry, I didn't mean this to be a Fire-bashing message. It is cute, and temptingly cheap, but it's no iPad or iPod Touch. And at this point, I'd have to say it's definitely not for kids... unless you want them browsing porn and maxing out your credit card. ;-)Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #1 – December 11, 2011, 09:44:36 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127277QuoteThis also means if you should lose your Kindle Fire, whoever finds it will have open access to your Amazon account. The Fire comes already set up to use your Amazon account, with One-Click Purchasing enabled. A user can change the delivery address of any order. Need I say more? Yes. The Fire can be password protected just like the different iWhatever products.ed
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #2 – December 12, 2011, 01:45:31 am Yahoo Message Number: 127280I would never give a Kindle of any kind to anyone registered on my account. Deregister it..register it in the receipients name with your credit card...put a gift card on it and remove your credit card. That way the device is ready to use...has a little cash on it for buying books, music etc. When the balance is gone the user will have to add their own method of payment ( gift card, credit card..etc.). The Fire can be password protected just like any other device. I personally think children should be supervised with computer devices...they can find their way around almost any block put in place. I have a Fire..I am very careful with it, my phone, my Kindle, my laptop. I don't let anyone use them and I am very careful to keep track of them. If you lose anything of that nature someone could cause you a lot of misery. That is just the nature of the beast...along with the good from new technology come the bad.
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #3 – December 12, 2011, 07:46:06 am Yahoo Message Number: 127281"The Fire can be password protected just like the different iWhatever products." Good point; I should have said "if you should lose your Kindle Fire AND you didn't password-protect it." Most folks I know don't password-protect their mobile devices because it makes them too clumsy to use. But with Apple's iPhone/iPod/iPad devices, that doesn't matter so much, because even if the device itself is unlocked, you can't purchase anything without first signing into the App Store with your password. To me, this is a good arrangement: my iPad is usable as soon as I open the magnetic cover, but nobody can make a purchase with it unless they sign in with an AppleID. Usability isn't impaired, but the important thing--the ability to spend money--is protected. Kindles don't do this. With the b&w ereader models it's not such a big deal, because the worst a thief could do is order a few books. But with the Fire--which, let's remember, is less of a tablet than it is an Amazon shopping tool--a thief or a child could order a $2,000 plasma TV on your credit card, literally with one touch of the finger. So the bottom line is: if you have a Fire, you'd better have the entire device password-protected... and keep it away from children.Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #4 – December 12, 2011, 08:02:40 am Yahoo Message Number: 127282"...the Fire--which, let's remember, is less of a tablet than it is an Amazon shopping tool--a thief or a child could order a $2,000 plasma TV on your credit card, literally with one touch of the finger."There was a time when kids were being killed for their tennis shoes. A stolen Kindle is only usable until it is reported, but if your focus is on the kid that disappeared with it........ That potential is enough to scare me off.[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #5 – December 12, 2011, 11:26:14 am Yahoo Message Number: 127287Quote "...the Fire--which, let's remember, is less of a tablet than it is an Amazon shopping tool--a thief or a child could order a $2,000 plasma TV on your credit card, literally with one touch of the finger." If, and only if, you have chosen to do two things. (1) Give Amazon your credit card information for them to store in their files (2) On the Fire, you have decided to activate the 1 Click purchase option.(Actually that's the default setting) To deactivate the 1 Click purchase option, go to Your Account, Manage address and 1 Click, then turn 1 Click off as it applies to the Fire. By simply turning off 1 Click purchasing you will prevent unauthorized users from buying stuff via your Fire.ed
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #6 – December 12, 2011, 12:03:02 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127288Not only that, but Amazon will only send 1 click purchases to an address already associated with your account. For any Amazon order, sending something to a new address will require you to enter the payment information again. So, if someone (kid or thief) happens to acquire your kindle an orders a $2000 plasma TV, they can only send it to your address. Also, you get an email about any physical order almost instantly
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #7 – December 12, 2011, 07:44:26 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127293"Amazon will only send 1 click purchases to an address already associated with your account. For any Amazon order, sending something to a new address will require you to enter the payment information again." True, and I plead guilty to being alarmist in my last post. No plasma TVs will be shipped to other addresses without verification. However, that only applies to physical goods. Purchases of software, downloaded music and downloaded or streamed movies and TV shows are not subject to any kind of verification, and the Fire comes with one-click ordering turned on for these kinds of purchases by default. A child could run up a sizable bill in the course of a month just watching movies at ten bucks a pop, buying downloadable albums at ten to fifteen bucks, buying Android software, and so on. For what it's worth, Amazon just announced that they're planning a Kindle Fire software update in a few weeks to address some of the concerns expressed in recent (largely negative) Fire reviews. No word on whether parental controls will be included, though.Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #8 – December 12, 2011, 08:05:33 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127294A good summary of the current situation:http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/12/technology/personaltech/amazons-fire-some-say-may-become-the-edsel-of-tablets.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all> I hope the forthcoming software fix will improve things. Despite what I've said recently, I'd really like to see Amazon succeed with the Fire. But at least based on my experience with it, they have a l-o-n-g way to go.Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #9 – December 12, 2011, 08:42:31 pm Yahoo Message Number: 127297QuoteHowever, that only applies to physical goods. Purchases of software, downloaded music and downloaded or streamed movies and TV shows are not subject to any kind of verification, and the Fire comes with one-click ordering turned on for these kinds of purchases by default. It's a 5 second chore to turn one-click off if so desired. End of problemA child could run up a sizable bill in the course of a month just watching movies at ten bucks a pop, buying downloadable albums at ten to fifteen bucks, buying Android software, and so on. Some would say this issue falls under the category of Parental Responsibility. Plus, each and every time an item is purchased, and even a free app. is considered a purchase, an e-mail is sent to the address of record. Mom or Dad will instantly know what's going on and deal with it in an appropriate manner.Quote For what it's worth, Amazon just announced that they're planning a Kindle Fire software update in a few weeks to address some of the concerns expressed in recent (largely negative) Fire reviews. No word on whether parental controls will be included, though. Just like the four+ year evolution of the iPhone and now iPad 3 rumored for next Spring, these things do take time to work out the kinks, don't they? Did anyone seriously expect a flawless product right out of the starting gate?Not even the beloved Apple can do that.ed
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #10 – December 13, 2011, 09:39:20 am Yahoo Message Number: 127306"By simply turning off 1 Click purchasing you will prevent unauthorized users from buying stuff via your Fire."That is not necessarily true... Buyers can order the device as a gift so it is not linked to their account, and It's also possible to deregister Kindle Fire after ordering it. However, doing so cripples the device. The report described the experience of software engineer Lance Durham, who bought two for his children. After purchasing some games to preload on the devices, Durham noted he could place orders without confirmation. Amazon's only advice was to deregister the device after each purchase, but Durham said that caused the downloaded apps to stop working. "He returned the tablets," Reuters stated. Other reports have noted that turning off 1-Click on the Kindle Fire doesn't necessarily stop unauthorized purchases. Even after turning it off, multiple users have stated that the Kindle Fire continues to allow them to buy or rent Amazon content without asking for an account password.The entire article can be seen here! http://iphone.appleinsider.com/articles/11/12/09/parents_complain_amazons_kindle_fire_gives_kids_access_to_porn_accounts.html"Did anyone seriously expect a flawless product right out of the starting gate?Not even the beloved Apple can do that." No, but certainly Apple's sales, popularity and dominance of the markets they choose to enter and make a difference in reflects a product that comes closer by a mile than anyone else! The Amazon Kindle Fire serves the entry level market as a "Yugo" of Tablets. When one gets tired of the lack of features and smoothness of operation, which is noticeable when one actually tries an iPad, then an upgrade to an iPad would be considered and is probably more of a reality. In the meantime, the Fire serves the low end market well and functions adequately enough for the price point it is at. After all, to compete, Amazon had to sell the Fire for less than their raw costs, losing money on every unit while hoping to make their profit on the downloads of books etc from their site!Ed 94' 26.5' MidBath Red Lazy Daze named "TranQuility"
Re: Kindle Fire caution (off topic) Reply #11 – December 13, 2011, 10:10:31 am Yahoo Message Number: 127307As the owner of a 64gb 3G ipad2, and just recently bought a Fire for my twelve year old daughter, I trust her, so I have absolutely no worries. Both the ipad and the Fire serve thier purposes, as they are different. As to computing, sorry, but the ipad2 is no comparison to a real computer, I use 3G to VPN and Remote Desktop my work PC (an advanced dell workstation, dual video cards, four 24" monitors, 12GB Ram, i7 processor, etc) and for that purpose along with the bbluetooth keyboard, the ipad2 is actually usable for work. But do not let anyone think that the Apple ipad2 is much more than a simple (though well developed) internet device that has some decent writing capabilties. As to reading (which I do a lot), I prefer my traditonal e-ink 3G Kindle over any of the others, I find that it is not nearly as fatiguing to the eyes, I can easily read for hours on end, and we wont even compare outdoors readability with either the Fire or ipad2. Plus battery life. If I did not trust my daughter, I would not have bought her the Fire. Simple. But she still uses her netbook for homework.Ken Sann
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